A SEARCH FOR MASS LOSS ON THE CEPHEID INSTABILITY STRIP USING H i 21 cm LINE OBSERVATIONS
Name
Matthews-2016-A search for mass loss on the Ce.pdf
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1.21 MB
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Author(s)
Marengo, M.
Evans, N. R.
Matthews, Lynn D.
Date Issued
December 2016
Journal
Astronomical Journal
Publisher
IOP Publishing
Citation
Matthews, L. D., M. Marengo, and N. R. Evans. “A SEARCH FOR MASS LOSS ON THE CEPHEID INSTABILITY STRIP USING H i 21 Cm LINE OBSERVATIONS.” The Astronomical Journal 152, no. 6 (December 2, 2016): 200. © 2016 The American Astronomical Society.
Version
Final published version
Abstract
We present the results of a search for H i 21 cm line emission from the circumstellar environments of four Galactic Cepheids (RS Pup, X Cyg, ζ Gem, and T Mon) based on observations with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array. The observations were aimed at detecting gas associated with previous or ongoing mass loss. Near the long-period Cepheid T Mon, we report the detection of a partial shell-like structure whose properties appear consistent with originating from an earlier epoch of Cepheid mass loss. At the distance of T Mon, the nebula would have a mass (H I+He) of ∼0.5M[subscript ⨀], or ~6% of the stellar mass. Assuming that one-third of the nebular mass comprises swept-up interstellar gas, we estimate an implied mass-loss rate of [superscript dot]M∼(0.6-2) x 10⁻⁵ M[subscript ⨀] yr−1. No clear signatures of circumstellar emission were found toward ζ Gem, RS Pup, or X Cyg, although in each case, line-of-sight confusion compromised portions of the spectral band. For the undetected stars, we derive model-dependent 3𝜎 upper limits on the mass-loss rates, averaged over their lifetimes on the instability strip, of ≲ (0.3-6) x 10⁻⁶ M[subscript ⨀] yr⁻¹ and estimate the total amount of mass lost to be less than a few percent of the stellar mass.
MIT Department
Haystack Observatory
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DOI of Published Version
https://doi.org/10.3847/0004-6256/152/6/200
